


The Guilt He Holds

by SkyFallSlayer



Series: I Hold No Heartbeat [1]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Gen, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Other, Parental Riza Hawkeye, Parental Roy Mustang, Team as Family, depressing day, protective team mustang, sad edward elric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:06:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24988777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyFallSlayer/pseuds/SkyFallSlayer
Summary: Roy and the others knew that Edward held the burden of what happened to him and his brother during the taboo. However, when Ed’s asleep and they find a picture of a mysterious girl, Alphonse is forced to share the Elric brothers' secret; and it shows how much more guilt Ed has.
Relationships: Alphonse Elric & Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric & Edward Elric & Original Female Character(s), Alphonse Elric & Original Character(s), Alphonse Elric & Riza Hawkeye, Alphonse Elric & Roy Mustang, Alphonse Elric & Team Mustang, Edward Elric & Original Character(s), Edward Elric & Riza Hawkeye, Edward Elric & Roy Mustang, Edward Elric & Team Mustang
Series: I Hold No Heartbeat [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1808914
Comments: 8
Kudos: 54





	The Guilt He Holds

**Author's Note:**

> It's just a little idea that came to mind, and I had to right it down. This will be a two part series, and the next story will be a chapter fic. I own nothing but my OC. Enjoy!

His small hand held the withered photo as his eyes trailed back and forth from the calendar on the wall and the old photo. There was no way that anybody could miss the guilt and sadness in those eyes, the eyes that were supposed to be filled with fire, not guilt and sadness. Ones who knew the Fullmetal Alchemist knew that he never showed these kinds of emotion. Even if all the odds were against him, he would always find a way around it.

However, Today was different, a certain time of the year was rolling around, something that should bring him joy, but only brought him shame and depression. How could he ever forgive himself for what he’s done? 

Loud footsteps made of metal made its way behind the prodigy, holding and checking the bag of his belongings. The young alchemist never bothered to look back as he continued to lean against the small, kitchenette counter. 

“Hey, Brother, I got my things to keep myself occupied today.” Alphonse said, closing the bag. “Are you ready for work?” He looks up with his soul filled eyes only to see he wasn’t listening. “Brother?”

“It’s April twentieth.” Edward muttered almost too quiet, his eyes were now fully glued to the picture. 

“April twentieth?” Al used his height as an advantage to look over his older brother’s shoulder, spotting the photo. If he could frown he would, but you could practically hear it in his next words, “Oh… yeah. It almost slipped my mind.” He gave a nervous chuckle, but Ed still didn’t look back. Al’s shoulders sagged, tilting his head slightly. “Do you want to get a cake later?”

“A cake?” Ed asked, glancing back slightly. 

“Yeah, we can go up to the bakery up the street. They might have coconut.” Al’s eyes seemed to smile for him.

“Coconut… she would have loved that.” Ed pulls out his journal, sliding the photo in between the pages before putting it back into pocket. “Let’s do it. We could see if they have candles too.” He turns to face his armored brother completely. “Let’s go to work, the sooner I finish, the faster we can go get cake.”

Al’s eyes shined brighter. “Sounds good, brother.”

As the two of them headed out of their mini apartment, the youngest Elric didn’t miss the way his big brother walked slowly, almost like he was in pain. That, and the way he plaster the frown that had so much emotion in it. And he also couldn’t miss those amber eyes that held no fire. Of course there was no fire, it was burnt out with the guilt he’s been carrying since the taboo, and no matter how many times Al tried to tell Ed it wasn’t his fault, the eldest couldn’t let it go. 

How could he judge though? Ed wanted to bring their mother back, he wanted to see her smile again; Instead, all he saw was fear that night, fear when he looked inside Alphonse’s eyes, fear when he saw his body was gone, and fear when their mother’s look alike came through the door… 

and dropped _**dead.**_

***Break***

The elevator boot hit the door hard as Ed tried to put on his usual facade. “S’up, Colonel Bastard!!” He yelled, startling everyone in the office.

“God Damn it… I still can’t get used to that.” Jean said, holding his chest as he nearly lost his cigarette. 

“You’re early.” Roy stated, as he watched his youngest subordinate come up to his desk. 

“So?” Ed raised an eyebrow.

“You’re _never_ early.” He furrowed his eyebrows confusedly, wondering what the catch is at this point.

The blonde shrugs. “You need help with the paperwork to move to Central command, right?”

Now Roy was beyond confused. “You? You’re actually going to help me with the paperwork? And I don’t have to threaten to court martial you?” 

Ed sighs. “Will you just give me the paperwork? Don’t make me change my mind helping you, bastard.” 

“Um… okay…” 

Roy hands the boy a stack of paperwork that needs to be looked through and signed, and Edward completely misses when the adults glanced at one another worriedly. 

“Ed?” Riza said, letting her serious tone slip for something more gentle.

“Yeah, Lieutenant?” Ed asked, looking through the stack of paper.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Well, it’s because you seem-”

The door opens normally, sparing anymore dents in the office walls and it was all thanks to Alphonse. “I’m sorry, brother. Major Armstrong got a hold of me and talked my ear off.” He replies, waving to everyone.

“Hey, Alphonse.” Heymans replies, waving back.

“Hi, everyone. Mind if I join?” 

Roy’s worriedness disappeared for a split second. “Not at all. Have a seat.” He smiles and gestures to the couch.

“Thank you, Colonel.” Al gives a small bow to him before sitting down.

Once the fourteen year old was sitting down, The flame alchemist turned his attention back on his subordinate who was still standing in the same spot reading. “Fullmetal?”

“What?” Ed said, finally looking up.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You seem… off?”

“Pfft… I’m fine. Jeez, I arrive early and you all automatically think something’s wrong.”

“Then what’s the rush? Judging by the way you’re reading those notes, you obviously want to get out of this office as soon as possible. Am I right?”

His golden eyes darted away, as he waved him off. “Sure, whatever. The faster I get done, the faster I can get out of this damn office.”

“Actually you can’t. You’re on office duty today, so you stuck with the same schedule like the rest of us. Your shift doesn’t end till five tonight.”

His head whips back to his superior. “What?!”

Roy nods, almost laughing at his overly dramatic reaction. “It’s a little after eight right now, which means you have ten more hours to go.” He smirks. “So you might want to pace yourself when you're doing the paperwork.”

Ed pursed his lips together tightly. He looks away again. “Damn you…” he mumbles.

“Hey, don’t blame me, I don’t make the schedule.” Roy replies, smugly.

He groans. “If I had a damn mission, I wouldn't be here!”

“Well I offered you a mission, but you insisted on staying here in the east for the weekends.” It was true, when Ed told him he wanted to hold off on the mission to find the stone it completely shocked him. Why in the world would Edward even do that? It seemed like it was near impossible for the boy to even _think_ that. “Why is that?” 

“Because I wanted the damn day off for my sis-” He froze, eyes dilating a bit before disappearing. “Nevermind…” 

Al nearly twitched at his brother’s reaction, watching as he kept his mouth shut before sitting down at his own desk. His eyes glued to the paper as he avoided everyone's worried/confused gaze that he could feel on him. The adults in the room soon went back to doing their office work, making the fourteen year old wonder if he should say something. But the way he saw the fire started to die in his brother’s eyes again made him decide against it. He didn’t want his brother to become more depressed. That, and he knew his brother actually sheds tears on this day, which he knew Ed didn’t like to do in front of people.

Well, 

Except if it was in front of _**her.**_

***Break***

Roy groaned as he heard his subordinate’s repeated snapping. He rubbed his temple, and looked straight at the second lieutenant’s desk. _“Havoc,_ would you please stop the snapping, you’ve been doing it for the past five minutes.” 

“Sorry boss, but I’m trying to get the Chief up.” Was his reply, as he looked back at the Colonel.

“What?”

Jean’s reply caught everyone’s attention, their eyes wandering to the prodigy desk who was sound asleep. His head was laying on the table, his hands still holding his journal, and the stack of finished paperwork laid next to him.

“Brother?” Al said, shifting his spot on the couch to see. 

“Is Ed really sleeping?” Vato asked, surprised. The boy never sleeps when at work. It was like finding a unicorn for him to sleep in public and in front of people.

“Yeah, Chief’s out like a light.” Jean replies, shaking the table a bit. “Come on, Chief. You can’t be done with the paperwork already, it’s only been four hours.”

The shaking didn’t even make the teen budge, instead he only responded with soft snoring. 

“Damn he’s out.” Heymans says, tilting his head at the sleep. “Hey, Kid, don’t you want any _lunch?”_ Edward still didn’t stir. “Not even the promise of food could wake him up from his deep sleep? That’s surprising.” 

“He really is out isn’t he?” Roy asked, coming to stand next to his men who were practically hovering over him like a once and a lifetime experience. Just like the others, Roy’s never seemed him sleep before.

“Sure is.” Vato replies, casually.

“Leave him alone.” Riza said out of the blue, coming to stand near them. “He’s a growing boy and he needs his sleep.” She gave them a cold hard stare. “Move away from Ed, or else…” She pats her holster on her hip, scaring the five grown men.

“Yes, ma’am.” The stutters, shifting away from him. 

She watched them for a moment before turning to the child on the couch. “Alphonse, has your brother been sleeping lately?” 

Al nods slowly. “Yes, he has. Except for last night he had some trouble. Why do you ask?”

“Well, Ed seems a little off today, that’s all. We’ve all noticed.” She frowns worriedly. “Are you sure he’s okay?”

Al stayed quiet for a moment, now feeling that everyone was looking at him for an answer. “Well… he’s-”

“Who’s the picture of?” Kain’s voice broke through their discussion like a knife. Everyone’s attention was now drawn back to another person in the office, one who was holding up a picture. 

The picture had a girl in it, one with short, chestnut colored hair and bright emerald eyes; She also had tan skin and was hugging two blonde little boys. 

If Al’s soul eyes could shrink, they would have, and it was to show that he was caught off guard (But the way he tensed up a bit actually gave his reaction away). He tried to stay calm, and speak clearly, “That’s…”

“This one boy here on the right looks like Chief a bit.” Heymans said, scratching his chin intensely as he thinks. 

“Now that you mention it… it does.” Kain says, taking the picture in with amusement.

“Let me see.” Roy replies, as the Sergeant hands it over to him. His curious expression turned to surprise. “Oh yeah, it does.” 

The grown ups nodded in agreement as they all took another look at the picture. The boy on the right was definitely Edward, anyone could recognize that golden hair and eyes; not to mention his signature cheeky grin. But the other boy looked a little bit like the state alchemist as well, except his hair was a shade darker than Ed’s.  
Could that be Alphonse? None of them have seen a picture of the fourteen year old when he was a kid, and It would make sense that this was him. I mean, those brother’s were inseparable.  
Then who was the girl hugging them? Their mother? The Elric once said their mother had brown hair and green eyes. Could this be her?

Before they could even express their minds, Alphonse seemed to know what they were all thinking. “That's my brother's picture. He always carries it around with him.” He replies, sounding a bit sad.

“He carries this around with him?” Heymans asks, curiously.

Kain’s eyes widened with realization. “Oh! This must have fallen out when he opened his journal. Right?”

Al nods. “Yes. Brother always keeps that in his journal.”

“Well speaking of Ed, we know he’s the one on the right.” Jean said, before pointing at the other boy. “So is this you?”

Al nods again. “Yeah, that’s me.”

The soldier perked up at this bit of information, while smiling proudly at Alphonse. They could finally picture what the boy stuck in the suit of armor looked like, and they could finally stop guessing what he did look like. However, there was still the million cen question at stake, and it was…

“Who’s that girl with you and Edward?” Riza asked, still gazing at him warmly. But even her welcoming smile couldn’t make Al feel any better.

He sagged a bit, looking uncomfortable. “Um… well…” He stutters and sighs. “Brother’s going to kill me for this…”

Roy raised an eyebrow. “Why? Are you not allowed to tell us?” He wouldn’t be a little bit surprised if that was the reason. Fullmetal was always so secretive when it came to personal stuff.

Al shook his metal head. “No, it’s not that. It’s just…” His head hangs low. “Ed blames himself for what happened to her.”

“He blames himself?” Vato asked, confused. “But didn’t your mother die from a pandemic? How could that have been his fault?”

Al’s head shoots up, and everyone could sense his confusion. “Oh no, that’s not our mother. I mean she looks like her, but it’s not.”

“It’s not?” Kain asked, surprised.

“Then who is it?” Jean asked, curious. 

“That’s our sister, Layla.” Al replies, sadness and happiness in his voice.

“Sister?!?!” The adults yelled in unison, eyes all wide. 

Roy shook his head, almost like he was trying to deny what he just heard. “Hang on second, you two have a sister?” 

“Yeah!” The boy seemed so happy, until his spiky shoulders fell again. “Well… we use to…”

“Use to?” Kain asked, feeling a bit ill when hearing those words.

Riza frowns, staring worriedly at the boy. “Oh, Alphonse…”

“It’s okay, it’s not like we’ve ever told you.” Al replies, truthfully. “I mean, it would have been nice to, but I didn’t want to upset brother. It’s hard for him to even talk about her sometimes.”

“I see…” Riza says. She could hear the vulnerability in his voice when he spoke of her. 

Jean shifted his stance uncomfortably. “If you don’t mind Alphonse,... do you care to explain what you mean by when Ed blames himself?” He asks, nervously. “Only if it’s okay with you! I don’t want to cross a line.”

“No, No. It’s okay. It might be good to talk about. It’s just…” Al’s eyes looked at his brother who was still sound asleep. “Don’t mention her to Ed please, today’s been hard for him.”

“Our lips are sealed, Alphonse.” Roy replies, softly. He quickly took a look at his youngest subordinate behind him, before looking back at the armor suit. “Are you sure you want to tell us? We can act like we never saw this photo.”

“Don’t do that, I want to tell you.” 

And everyone stayed quiet to listen, watching him collect himself before he told a secret that he's been holding for who-knows how long; A secret that they knew didn’t have one of those fairytale outcomes. 

“Our sister was older than us,” Al begins, his eyes falling to the floor. “Three years older than me, and two years older than Ed. When our mother got sick and died, and our father was out of the picture, Layla had to step in as our caretaker. She did everything, clean the house, do the laundry, cook for us. She even skipped school to work out on the fields to support us, she threw everything away just to make sure we were happy.” 

He paused to squeeze his hands together tightly, even if he couldn’t feel it, it was still a way to make him think like he was still human at dire times like this. He even seemed to gulp down the air he could not breathe. 

“Anyway… one night an alchemist passed by Resembool, and Me and Edward watched her fix a dam with alchemy, memorizing both of us. From that very moment, we wanted to be trained by her. We left when our sister was on the other side of town at a job, and we promised her we would call her everyday, and promised to be back as soon as we could. As Layla stayed back to pay off long overdue bills and pay the house off, we were in Dublith working on our alchemy, preparing for a surprise just for her when we returned.”

“And what kind of surprise was that?” Heymans asked, scared for the answer. 

Al stayed silent, feeling shameful with his reply. “That we were going to successfully attempt the taboo.” 

The adults tensed up. 

“Al…” Riza says, not knowing what to say.

“We were going to do it, we even arrived early to make sure she wasn’t home so we could surprise her. We wanted to do the taboo to see our mother smile again, at least that’s what brother told me.” He squeezed his hands tighter. “However, deep down, I think the real reason Edward wanted to do it the most, was that he wanted to give Layla another chance at her childhood that was stripped away. I mean, she was thirteen at the time, and she was even younger when our mother died, I could only imagine what she was going through.”

“But didn’t you have anyone to help you guys out? Like Neighbours?” Jean asked, feeling a bit bitter that no one was helping out three, basically orphan, kids.

“Havoc’s right about that. Didn’t the Rockbell ever help you?” Roy asked, concerned. The Elrics and miss Rockbell were childhood friends who both lost their parents; Shouldn’t they be there for one another?

“Oh don’t worry, they did.” Al replies, trying to ease their worriedness. “But, both Granny and Winry run a business, there were times that they were super busy or out of town for a job. The Ishvalan war had just ended, and there was high demand from soldiers and civilians for automail. So there were times it was just the three of us.”

Roy nods understandably. “Okay, That makes sense. Except for the taboo part.” His subordinates looked at him like he had three heads.

“What’s not to understand, boss? Both him and the chief committed the taboo.” Jean replies, eyeing the flame alchemist weirdly.

“Yes, Both him and Fullmetal did. Only the two brothers committed and were affected by the taboo. So, where does your sister fit in all this? It doesn’t make any sense.”

Now they understood what he was saying. Both the Colonel and the First Lieutenant found the Elric brothers after the taboo, and they never met, nor heard that they had a sister. So how does she fit into all this?

“I’ll tell you why.” Al says, sighing. His eyes were still glued to the floor as he tried to finish his tale without mentally crying. “We arrived early at home, just like I said, and we were setting up to do Human Transmutation in the basement. Since we were underground, we didn’t even hear our sister come through the front door upstairs.”

Roy’s stomach dropped in an instant, a sick and twisting thought crossed his mind, and hoped he was wrong. He’s not going to lie, as an alchemist himself, he’s read certain things about the taboo and knows just how powerful the circle itself could be. 

_“Don’t tell me,... that the circle actually….?”_ Roy wondered, fearfully.

“Both me and Ed activated the transmutation circle,... just as our sister entered the basement.” Al continues, making Roy fight the urge to bite his fingernails. “We both looked back and we could see the fear in her eyes as she asked us what were we doing, and before we could say anything… Ed’s leg got blown off. Soon, I lost my entire body.”

Al looks up at them finally. “Now, the rest of this is from Brother’s point of view, since I lost my body, so it’s a little… shaky. Apparently, Layla got close to the circle when I disappeared, and got caught up in the shockwaves. When Ed woke up and found out my body was gone, he immediately went to bind my soul to the armor, exchanging it for an arm. The second time he woke up, he didn’t care that he was missing two limbs and bleeding to death, he soon crawled away when he saw the suit moving my soul. He saw our sister laying on the floor and went to check on her. Ed checked her pulse, and found out what the law of equivalent exchange took from her.”

“W-which was…?” Kain asked, nearly shaking.

“The taboo took our sister’s life… our sister died right then and there.”

Riza brought a hand over her mouth, choking on a gasp. Roy’s stomach turned, his theory turning out to be right. He nearly wanted to vomit at the cruelty of human transmutation. Meanwhile, the other four soldiers shook to their core at the terrible tale.

“Alphonse… What happened next? Did you bury her next to the thing you transmuted?” Roy asked, trying to hold back bile in his throat.

Al shook his head. “I didn’t help, I was so in shock, I couldn’t even move.” He admits. “Granny actually buried what we created, and she even buried Layla too, but she buried her somewhere else, somewhere more peaceful since the gravesite where our mother’s at was too far away.”

“How was Full-... Edward? Was he okay?” A dumb question, but he wanted to know how the prodigy was handling that awful night.

“Ed… Ed tore himself apart, before and after when you showed up with Lieutenant Hawkeye and offered him the job. There were times when he refused to have any kind of sedative to help him sleep during automail surgery, he said he deserved it, he deserved it for killing his own sister.” 

“Al, You two were kids who had no parents, how could Ed blame himself so easily?” Roy asked, his serious facade disappearing long ago, being replaced by his worried one. They were kids, kids who had no one, kids who wanted to see their mother again. So why was there so much guilt between the older brother?

Al chuckled weakly. “You know how brother is, he’s always carrying blame on his shoulders. I mean, I’m not blaming him when I say this, but Ed was the one who came up with the Human Transmutation idea, he was the one who talked me into it.” He sighs. “I wanted to do it too, but not as much as Edward. So between convincing me, and Layla accidentally getting caught up into it, he definitely won’t let all that guilt go. I’ve tried so hard to tell him it’s not his fault, but he just won’t simply listen.”

“Is that how I make you feel, Al?” Ed’s voice suddenly broke through.

Al and the others looked up in surprise, watching as the prodigy as he started to sit up straight in his desk chair.

“Brother! I thought you were asleep.” Al replies, quickly.

“I was, for a little while.” 

“Oh…” Silence. “How much did you hear?”

“I heard enough.” His bangs covered his broken eyes.

“Brother-”

“Fullmetal, please look at me.” Roy says, waiting for those amber eyes to look into his coal ones. They did, and his heart nearly broke at the dying fire in them. The boy looked so fragile at that very moment. “What happened to your sister, was not your fault.”

Ed looked like he was about to cry. “It’s not? How? Why not? I killed her.”

“Human transmutation did, you didn’t.”

“I activated the circle! So it’s my fault she lost her life!”

Roy stared at the boy with pity, knowing damn well his subordinate hated pity, but he doesn’t give a shit right now. Ed needs it whether he likes it or not. “Ed, your sister’s the one who ran to the circle, she got hit with the shockwave.”

Ed gave a small glare at his superior. “So what? You’re blaming my sister now for her own death? That’s a low blow, even for you, Colonel Bastard.”

The Colonel shook his head. “No, that’s not what I’m saying. Here, let me phrase it better.” He gestures to Al who was still sitting on the couch. “Let’s say Alphonse was in danger, what would you do?”

The teen tilted his head, slightly confused on why he changed the subject. “I would help him, I mean he’s my brother after all.”

“Correct. Now with that being said, what did your sister do that night?”

His shoulders sagged, and he seemed to frown even more. “Well she ran right towards us. She was-” His eyes widened with realization. “Layla… was coming to help us. She was just doing her job at being our big sister.”

Roy nods. “Yes, you see? It’s not your fault, you didn’t kill her. She just wanted to make sure you two were okay and safe. She was doing what you would do if Alphonse was in danger.”

Ed let those words sink in for a moment, letting his head slowly fall, his bangs covering his eyes again. He shook a tiny bit, before everyone heard a small sob and gasp, watching as droplets of tears fell onto his lap. 

“I-I’m not crying…” Ed sobbed, wiping the tears away with the back of hand. “I j-just got dust in my eyes.”

“Ed.” Riza begins, coming and kneeling in front of him. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay to cry, you obviously have been holding this in for quite some time. No one’s going to judge you.”

“Y-You’re not?” The boy choked.

“Of course not.” Vato replies, calmingly.

“Yeah Chief, everyone cries for someone eventually, it's just part of life.” Jean said, giving a warming smile to his commanding officer. 

“Yeah, don’t hold it in kid. It’s not good for you.” Heymans adds, agreeing with his friends.

“Feel free to cry here if you have too, we all understand.” Kain says, also giving a warm smile.

“You do?” Ed asked, looking between them all.

“We do.” Riza replies, giving his shoulder a comforting squeeze. “Edward, we’re soldiers, we know what it's like to lose someone we all care about. Even when we're off duty, we still will lose someone eventually. Like Jean said, it happens to us all.”

“And Fullmetal?” Roy begins, catching his attention. “If you needed the day off, you could have told me. I mean you didn't have to mention you were grieving for your sister, but you could have at least told me you weren’t feeling well. I would have totally understood if you did.”

Ed was speechless. After all these years, he was finally getting the okay to grieve, the okay to break down and cry in front of someone that wasn’t his brother, that wasn’t being home alone in his bedroom crying, that wasn’t the bathroom mirror he would stare at for hours and hours in self blame. He could finally put down the guilt he’s been carrying for years, even if it’s only for a few moments like right now.

“I don't know what to say…” He replies, staring at his hands. “I mean, Al always tells me these things too, and it has never really clicked with me until now. I don’t know why.”

“It’s because you think you failed me too.” Al says, standing up. “I think you needed to hear it from someone else, someone who doesn’t share blood like you and me. I’m glad you finally realized that you don’t have to carry all that guilt anymore.”

“I guess you’re right.” He looks at all of them. “Um.. Thank you for talking to me, everyone. I appreciate it.”

Stunned by the response, but they threw it away just to give him another warming smile and pats on his back, telling him that it was alright. 

“You’re a good kid, chief. Don’t let that one thing weigh you down.” Heymans said, truthfully. 

Ed nods. “Understood.”

“Fullmetal, why don’t you take the rest of the day off? You looked like you need to sleep.” Roy replies, kindly.

“Really?”

“Yeah. Go home.”

“Alright then. I won’t argue with that.”

“One thing though, Fullmetal.”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t remember meeting you and Al back in Resembool in April. So if today isn’t the day of the taboo, what is it?” 

Ed smiled bittersweetly. “It’s Layla’s seventeenth birthday today, that’s why I’m sad. Speaking of birthday,” He looks at his younger brother. “Are we still getting the cake on the way home?” 

“That’s the plan.” Al replies, grabbing his things.

The eldest slid his journal back in his pocket after Roy gave him the picture back. “See you guys tomorrow!” He waves and opens the door, leaving.

“Bye chief!” Jean called out.

“Take care, Fullmetal!” Roy yells, almost sounding like an order. 

“Bye everyone!” Al said, waving also.

“Bye Alphonse. Make sure he gets some sleep, he’s going to be needing it for work.” 

“I will, Colonel.” He starts heading for the door, stopping to say one last thing to his found family. “Um… thank you for talking to Ed, it seemed to help.”

“Don’t mention it, Alphonse. We’re always here to help.” Riza replies, happily.

“I’ll keep that in mind, Lieutenant. I’ll see you tomorrow.” And he was gone. Leaving the room and people’s thoughts.

“That boy, he’s going to have a breakdown with all that guilt built up if he’s not careful.” Roy says, shaking his head at his youngest subordinate’s actions.

“I hope not.” Vato admits, frowning at the thought.

“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Kain asked, worriedly.

Will he be okay? Probably not, he’ll never be okay with his sister’s death, but at least the weight of the guilt has been lifted. And now Edward knows he could talk not only to his brother, but to anyone on this team as well. 

Roy couldn’t help but smile at that. “You know what, I think Fullmetal will be just fine.” 

Because those two boys have a family, even if they don’t share any blood.

**Author's Note:**

> Is it weird I like writing depressing Ed? I think it's an interesting thing to write in my opinion. Thanks for reading!


End file.
